Botanical Illustrations by Taxon - this is a comprehensive listing of various botanical illustrations by taxon. Worth a study if you are looking at illustrating a plant which is new to you.

Biological classification - Biological classification, or scientific classification in biology, is a method of scientific taxonomy used to group and categorise organisms into groups such as genus or species.

The signboard “Methodus Plantarum Sexualis in sistemate naturae descripta” (Leiden 1736) images according to Linneus's 24 classes of the sexual systems of plants (the names of which are on the right).
The graphic was produced by Georg Dionysius Ehret.

The role of Carl Linnaeus​

The origins of the taxonomy of plants and plant nomenclature used today is almost entirely indebted to the work done by the Swedish botanist, physician and zoologist Carolus Linnaeus (1707–1778) also known as Carl Linnaeus or Carl von Linn.

​He reviewed the historical manuscripts about plants and developed a comprehensive system for grouping and naming plants.

His manuscript describing a new system for classifying plants was called "Systema Naturae". It introduced the system of binomial nomenclature which is still in use today. ​Subsequent research (eg Darwin, DNA etc) has revised and continues to revise the groupings devised by Linnaeus but the basics of the system continue largely to be based on his idea of how to organise biological entities - and describe, classify and name organisms.

The link below is to the most amazing online exhibition about the importance of Linnaeus and includes a huge amount of information about the birth of modern botany and how plants were documented

Definition of Genus: BiologyA taxonomic category ranking below a family and above a species and generally consisting of a group of species exhibiting similar characteristics. In taxonomic nomenclature the genus name is used, either alone or followed by a Latin adjective or epithet, to form the name of a species.﻿— The Free Dictionary﻿

The Art of Plant Evolution by Professor W. John Kress and Shirley Sherwood

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED: Rated USA: 5.0 stars (4 customer reviews)

READ MY REVIEW Book Review: The Art of Plant Evolution. I have a copy and found it hugely educational from a botanical perspective. Reading it made the whole taxonomy of plants make sense to me for the first time!

​I also enjoyed the wider variety of artworks - including etchings and pen and ink plus artists from a variety of countries including significant numbers of contemporary artists from Japan and Brazil.

This publication is based on an 'art meets science' exhibition in the Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew in 2009/10 to celebrate Kew's 250th anniversary and Darwin's bicentenary. The exhibition provided an overview of plant relationships based on contemporary scientific discoveries and DNA test.

The Art of Plant Evolution, by Dr Shirley Sherwood and Professor John Kress of the Smithsonian is the catalogue/book for the the exhibition.

It is produced by Kew Publishing and is available as both a Hardback, (with dust-jacket) and a Softback edition

The text relating to each of the paintings in the exhibition comments on the artist's background, and the artist's observations in the context of modern plant classification.

Informative text provide overviews of related topics in biology - including natural selection and the origin of plant species, plant evolutionary relationships and classification, fossil and DNA evidence, and co-evolution between plants and animals

Plant Science - Resources​

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus is known as the father of modern taxonomy, and is also considered one of the fathers of modern ecology. He developed a system which underpins the modern scheme of binomial nomenclature

Binomial nomenclature - a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts

Systema Naturae - Wikipedia - Systema Naturae was one of the major works of the Swedish botanist, zoologist and physician Carolus Linnaeus and introduced the Linnaean taxonomy.

Taxonomy: Other References

Botany - How people came to understand the natural order of the plant world

Education in Plant Science

One of the things I've found most amazing of late are the number of artists who are undertaking advances studies in botany and plant science so they can become better members of the teams which work at recording plants.

Thus I find I'm interviewing RHS Gold Medallists who started off as botanical artists - but who are now doing MScs and PhDs in Botany!

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